[Congressional Bills 105th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. Res. 309 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

  2d Session
S. RES. 309

Expressing the sense of the Senate regarding the culpability of Hun Sen 
for violations of international humanitarian law after 1978 in Cambodia 
 (the former People's Republic of Kampuchea and the State of Cambodia).


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

             October 15 (legislative day, October 2), 1998

   Mr. Helms (for himself and Mr. McConnell) submitted the following 
  resolution; which was referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations

_______________________________________________________________________

                               RESOLUTION


 
Expressing the sense of the Senate regarding the culpability of Hun Sen 
for violations of international humanitarian law after 1978 in Cambodia 
 (the former People's Republic of Kampuchea and the State of Cambodia).

Whereas under the Vietnamese communist occupation of Cambodia (the former 
        People's Republic of Kampuchea and the State of Cambodia) between 1979 
        and 1989, Hun Sen was among a large number of former Khmer Rouge members 
        who were designated by the Vietnamese communists as surrogate leaders of 
        the People's Republic of Kampuchea, where international human rights 
        organizations documented widespread human rights violations;
Whereas during the period leading to internationally supervised elections in 
        1993, as Prime Minister of the State of Cambodia and a Politburo member 
        of the communist Cambodian People's Party (CPP), Hun Sen was responsible 
        for the disappearances, murder, and assassination attempts against 
        democratic opponents of the Cambodian People's Party;
Whereas after the Cambodian People's Party lost the 1993 national election, Hun 
        Sen organized a military force that threatened a military coup, 
        resulting in his being given a share of the Prime Minister position with 
        Prince Norodom Ranariddh, the election winner, and his Cambodian 
        People's Party maintaining control of the military, the internal 
        security forces, and provincial government administration;
Whereas in July 1997, Hun Sen ordered a coup d'etat against First Prime Minister 
        Prince Ranariddh which resulted in the deaths of a large number of 
        civilians caught in the crossfire and the torture and summary execution 
        of at least 100 government officials and the forced displacement of at 
        least 50,000 people as assaults continued on people or communities loyal 
        to Prince Ranariddh;
Whereas during the period leading to the July 1998 national election there were 
        widespread threats, assaults, and the suspected assassination of scores 
        of members of parties opposed to Hun Sen;
Whereas in September 1998, Hun Sen ordered a violent crackdown on thousands of 
        unarmed demonstrators, including Buddhist monks, who supported credible 
        investigations of irregularities in the electoral process and the change 
        in the format for allocating seats in the National Assembly which 
        permitted Hun Sen to maintain a small edge over Prince Ranariddh's 
        FUNCINPEC Party and entitled Hun Sen to maintain the post of Prime 
        Minister, which resulted in the brutality toward tens of thousands of 
        pro-democracy advocates and the deaths and disappearances of an unknown 
        number of people, and led to widespread civil unrest which threatens to 
        further destroy Cambodian society; and
Whereas Hun Sen has held, and continues to hold, high government office in a 
        repressive and violent regime, and has the power to decide for peace and 
        democracy and has instead decided for killing and repression, who has 
        the power to minimize illegal actions by subordinates and allies and 
        hold responsible those who committed such actions, but did not, and who 
        once again is directing a campaign of murder and repression against 
        unarmed civilians, while treating with contempt international efforts to 
        achieve a genuinely democratic government in Cambodia: Now, therefore, 
        be it
    Resolved, That it is the sense of the Senate that--
            (1) the United States should establish a collection of 
        information that can be supplied to an appropriate 
        international judicial tribunal for use as evidence to support 
        a possible indictment and trial of Hun Sen for violations of 
        international humanitarian law after 1978;
            (2) any such information concerning Hun Sen and individuals 
        under his authority already collected by the United States, 
        including information regarding the March 1997 grenade attack 
        against Sam Rainsy, should be provided to the tribunal at the 
        earliest possible time;
            (3) the United States should work with members of 
        interested countries and nongovernmental organizations relating 
        to information any country or organization may hold concerning 
        allegations of violations of international humanitarian law 
        after 1978 posed against Hun Sen and any individual under his 
        authority in Cambodia and give all such information to the 
        tribunal;
            (4) the United States should work with other interested 
        countries relating to measures to be taken to bring to justice 
        Hun Sen and individuals under Hun Sen's authority indicted for 
        such violations of international humanitarian law after 1978; 
        and
            (5) the United States should support such a tribunal for 
        the purpose of investigating Hun Sen's possible criminal 
        culpability for conceiving, directing, and sustaining a variety 
        of actions in violation of international humanitarian law after 
        1978 in any judicial proceeding that may result.
                                 <all>